The Exiled Gem

The Second Gem

Alexandra felt a surge of pride. That was better than what she could have done. The most plucky of men had fallen down before, in their attachment to their children, their inability to say "no" to them. Many had placed their sons above the throne. They had chosen their personal appeasement over their duty. Why, Liam's own father had done that at each step of life. The strongest men had lost before their descendants.

Not Liam. Not this time. It was difficult, it could result in a life-long of struggle. But this was another choice between the easy and the right.

They had to do what was right. Their unworthy son could not sit on the throne.

'You know very well, Father,' Nicholas hissed, 'that I can wrest power.'

Alexandra shook her slightly. That was not possible. And for the first time in many days, Liam laughed. A true, genuine, humorous laugh. Nicholas frowned as he did. Finally, Liam stopped and said, in a provoking tone, 'In that case, my son, you have not known me at all!'

Alexandra herself was drawn to laugh. Alright, yes, Liam was over sixty now. But she very well knew he was the same man. The man who had not lost a single time in his life.

Nicholas' frowned deepened. 'I do know you.' He tried to sound confident, but the undertone was nervous. 'It is time you stepped down, Father. Enjoy your old age.'

Liam laughed harder. Pushing his dark hair back and tilting his head. 'Old age.' He repeated. 'So, young Nicholas, I would ask you to pull out your sword. Let us decide this right away. If I lose this once, I will accept my old age. And, step down.' He declared. And Nicholas, because he was not foolish, looked suspicious. 

For a whole minute he didn't move, and didn't speak, and didn't even breathe. When it became too long a silence, without his father taking the words back, Nicholas deemed it fit to speak.

'A duel? Only one duel? And if I win...'

'I will step down, pass the throne to you. And accept your say as the final say for the rest of my life. Yes.' Liam repeated. Alexandra knew what he was doing. Alexandra knew he was going to break their son's swelled up pride. Finally, after so many years, it had become possible for her to read Liam's mind. Not as effortlessly as he read hers, and not as confidently either. But well enough to say, with conviction, what his true intentions were.

She pushed closer to the keyhole and stared harder. Nicholas' hand was on the sheath of his sword. 'Go on, young man. Pull it out. Wrest power from me. You are certainly not afraid of your sixty three year old father, are you now?' Liam taunted. Nicholas still didn't move. 'Or maybe then... I will have to begin.' Liam shrugged and before Alexandra could even blink, he unsheathed the sword strapped to his belt. Nicholas jerked out of his stupor and extracted his own weapon, from talking in low dangerous tones, the two men launched into fierce combat.

Six minutes.

Alexandra counted six minutes, was all it took for all the furniture in the room, other than the long, polished wooden table, to be upturned by their violent match. The two hands that swung the swords were just blurs before Alexandra as she sat pushed against the wooden door. In the twenty years of scattered practice, Alexandra's skills had become slightly rusty. That was the not the case with Liam. He was just as agile, just as speedy and dangerous. It only took two minutes more for Alexandra to hear the conclusive clatter of a sword.

The panting father and son, standing chest to chest. Nicholas pushed to the wall, dark, burning hatred in his eyes. Liam with one arm on his son's neck, pinning him back, his second arm holding the sword menacingly close to Nicholas' gut.

They stared into each other's eyes. 'What should I do now, Nicholas? Kill you?' Liam asked, in a low whisper. 'What would you do, if you had me at your mercy?' He stopped for a second, all them knowing what Nicholas would do. None of them wanting to voice it out. 'And that, my son,' Liam nodded, loosening his hold and dropping his sword arm down by his side. 'Is the difference between us.'